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I like the Northern Tier route, too, but I wouldn't sell the Trans-Am short, at least the Oregon section from Eugene to Hell's Canyon. Quite a bit of mountain passes as well. No "four passes in four days" like the NT, but there is the "three passes in one day" section from Prairie City to Baker City. McKenzie Pass is great if you time it so you can cross it, and the Painted Hills country near Mitchell? I don't think there's anything quite like it on the NT through Washington.

So to complicate things, I'll throw out yet another routing option: Head south from Vancouver BC and pick up the Sierra Cascades route and take that until you intersect with the Trans-Am route in Central Oregon. I haven't done all of SC through this area, just parts (Sierra Cascades overlaps the Northern Tier from Sedro-Wooley to Twisp).

I cycled from Vancouver to Boston in 2009 using sections of the ACA Northern Tier and Transam routes. I wouldn't change anything on the route I did.

Glasgow - Vancouver direct flight. Two ferries to get from Vanouver to Anacortes. I linked the Northern Tier east of Glacier National Park to the Transam at Yellowstone National Park via Route 89. Other than 10 or 15 miles south of Great Falls 89 is a superb cycling road. Recommended.

I took 80 days. If time is short you can save a few hundred miles by finishing in Washington DC instead of Boston. The GAP Trail and C@O Canal towpath take you right into central DC on an off road trail. I returned from Boston to the UK with Aer Lingus.

Continued thanks for all of the suggestions. Mindblowing number of choices!

Thanks for the trail info irc, since I am (said with confidence!) going on an old mountain bike it would be rude not to do the odd trail. I have been looking at the website (found in a post here on ACA) that lists some of the offroad options. The C&O goes directly past the only place I have ever been in the states, where the only people I know in the states live, near Harpers Ferry, so would be great to put that in there somewhere. Also quite keen on the Kettle Trail as a route out of Vancouver but the other options sound great too!

Need to work out exactly what links with what and start being more organised in my research but the next step on Monday is going to be approaching boss #2 with a theoretical situation where an employee might disappear for say a month...or three. Wish me luck.

I think IRC's idea of doing the San Juan Islands from Vancouver is an excellent one. They are great for biking, mostly car free, and very pretty. You could always go the Lake Erie Connector (Canada side of Lake Erie) if time is short.

Continued thanks for all of the suggestions. Mindblowing number of choices!

Thanks for the trail info irc, since I am (said with confidence!) going on an old mountain bike it would be rude not to do the odd trail.

Don't miss the KATY Trail then. A flat route (former railway) across Missouri which is otherwise a lot of short rolling hills. It follows the bank on the Missouri River some of the time which is a nice experience. Often routes following rivers or lakes are out of sight of the water as the water's edge is private property.

Thanks, been looking at the KATY trail too, its on the long and growing list! Would be great to hear how you managed from landing in Vancouver to sorting out bike and finding ferries etc irc, do you have a blog or oubt?

Slightly off topic but since you are here irc, did you have any problems crossing from Canada to USA?

The research I have done so far suggests, no special requirements and no need for the ESTA visa waiver form entering the US as that applies to air or sea entry. Does that sound about right, I can go straight to the border and sort it out there?

I was picked up at the airport by another user of the crazyguyonabike forum who I knew from posting on the site. I put my bike together at his house that night.

The following day we both cycled down to the ferry terminal for the Vancouver - Victoria (Tsawwassen-Swartz Bay) ferry. From Swartz Bay, Vancouver Island it is about a 5 mile ride to another ferry port - Sidney, from where a ferry runs to Anacortes in the USA. I strongly recommend that route. Easy to follow and lovely scenery cruising through the Islands on the two ferries. It's a nice contrast sailing on the sea before riding away from it for 4000 miles.

You will need to do a visa waiver but it can be done at the ferry port. You go through US immigration in Sidney before getting on to the ferry. They will give you the form. So you will need an address you are staying at the first night in the USA. I gave a campground address which wasn't a problem. I'm not sure if it is actually supposed to be a hotel/hostel/house.

I also left the USA at Marine City just north of Detroit - a ferry over the river then re-entered the USA at Niagara. There was no need for further forms and no problems. Just explained where I had come from and where I was going. Despite some people reporting problems I've never had the slightest issue with either USA or Canadian border staff.

Time off? Yes I'm going to be asking for 8 weeks time off soon as well. Always interesting

Still get the same thing with that link (and every other blog link from that website), might email the web chap and ask about it.

Hope you have more luck than my time off request, once owed holibobs are removed I was effectively asking for 6 weeks off which has now been denied. So this has taken on a whole new perspective as looking for a new job would also involve moving, suddenly this trip has alot of knock on implications. Ughh.

The plan now is to make the same request to directors (though I am certain it will have the same outcome) and I will carry on making loose trip plans and see if I can find some way around this dilemma.

Neil at CGOAB kindly gave me a fix for the linky dinks. It was due to a disagreement atwix Internet Explorer 8 and the journals. Simple removal of the "s" in https and all was fixed. Glad to get that sorted as your blog was the one I have "clicked" best with so far irc, so thanks very much for sharing.

After reading it, I decided that I would likely follow your route IF I have a time limit OR the Kettle route if no limit. Perhaps a journal named "fattest man on a Transam" or "fatter man on a Transam" would suit my trip.

And about time limits, the board met yesterday and declined my application for time off. This is tragic as I really really enjoy my job. It led to alot or arguments (which I wasn't even involved in!) but who said this was going to be easy? I phoned a very similar organisation in anticipation of the boards outcome and without hesitation; they said that taking that time off would not be a problem and they would work around it! So interview on Tuesday and possibly a move of house, business and job to a different county shortly after.

The only other thought I had was to resign from my old job as close as possible to trip departure and then re-apply for it when its advertised (obviously mentioning on the application that I would not be available from JUN-SEP) That way, there would be no policy breach for "sabbatical" requests, which is the reason the board used for not giving the time off.

At the very least, this has confirmed to me that I AM going to do this one way or another.

Glad you liked the journal. Enjoy your tour. I'll be on the Southern Tier starting March. I've not asked for time off yet but I'm going either way. If they say no I'm in the position I can afford to resign and look for another job when I come back. Hopefully my employer would rather hold my (part time) job open for 8 weeks than recruit and train someone else who would be an unknown quantity.